San Benito flood crossing leaves passenger dead, driver found hypothermic
By Felix Cortez
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SAN BENITO COUNTY, Calif. (KSBW) — A search and recovery mission was carried out on Wednesday morning off Panoche Road in San Benito County after the driver of a small sedan tried to cross a flooded Tres Pinos Creek.
“I know the river level rose, and sometimes it’s unpredictable. You leave for running errands, and you can make it, and you come back, and the river rises, and you don’t realize it, and you get swept away,” said Kaleb Simpson, a detective with the San Benito County Sheriff’s Office.
First responders say they were called to the area of Browns Valley Road on Tuesday night on reports of a car in the water. But following a thorough search, they found no one—until Wednesday morning, when the driver was seen walking down Highway 25, disoriented and showing signs of hypothermia.
“After talking to the individual, he said that he was one of the people who was in that vehicle from last night, and he was asking about where his friend may be, which prompted a larger-scale response to help look for the unaccounted individual,” said Josh Silveira, a Cal Fire battalion chief.
Search and rescue teams eventually found the passenger more than a mile downstream from where the car got stranded. The deceased was identified by family members as 28-year-old William Son.
The Sheriff’s Office is now investigating whether drugs, alcohol, or foul play were involved. Alcohol may play a role in the investigation, as a Modelo beer can could be seen on the dashboard of the flooded car.
“If it was just an accident, then it was just an accident—it’s a terrible tragedy. If there is any sort of criminal negligence, then we certainly want to make sure that we are prepared in that event,” said Simpson.
Firefighters say the death could have been prevented if the driver had obeyed a road sign on Browns Valley Road warning drivers, “When flooded, turn around—don’t drown.”
A warning is now being issued to other drivers who may be thinking of crossing flooded roadways.
“Understand that, you know, most places do have access and egress from multiple points—it just might not be convenient. In this situation, the alternate route was an additional 40 minutes out of the way, but it could have prevented this tragedy,” said Silveira.
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